About all of my interests are self taught. When I want to teach myself something, I look to the Internet for tutorials, videos, forums and the like. It’s really hard to me to leave things incomplete. It would bother me to leave a project unfinished. This brings in my attention to detail. I like to make sure that even the smallest things make sense to me and are done with full intention. I also try to be as resourceful as possible in order to save cost while achieving my goal. Most of all, I won’t quit. Even if it takes a couple of tries, I’ll follow a project through. I’ll touch up on some of these points in my interests.
WARNING: Lot’s of text!
Automotive
I gained an interest in cars when I was around 15 years old. I was inspired by the manga Initial D and that led me to gain a liking for Japanese cars. I still had an appreciation for American and European makes but the Japanese culture really resonated to me.
My first car was a 1987 MKIII Toyota Supra. It had a turbocharged 7M-GTE engine. This was the car that I learned manual in. I was 16 at the time I had the car and my grandfather bought it from a family friend. It was very exciting. I had so much fun driving it and there was just such a great feeling I had when driving it. It was because of this car that I gained preference for older vehicles. This car had many problems. To the point where it was a hassle to drive. This didn’t stop me from loving it though because I enjoyed the experience so much. Sure, it wasn’t the fastest, newest, or nicest car on the road, but I sure had fun with it. I didn’t anything about how to fix or maintain cars. I wanted to make it nice and do the regular maintenance, but I didn’t have the resources available to do so. After 3 months of having it, my dad sold it because it was costing too much to own it and we needed the money.
The next car I drove was my dad’s 2004 ES2 Honda Civic. This was the car I drove daily for a while. It was also the first car I did real customization on. Since this car wasn’t mine, I didn’t want to do very drastic changes. I couldn’t anyways because I didn’t have the money and I didn’t want to risk breaking something since this was my main form of transportation. Here’s what it looks like from the factory (pulled from online):
I bought very simple modifications including a front lip (attaches to the font bumper), fog lights, and plastic-dip (a rubber coating which acts like a removable paint). I taught myself how to install these parts using YouTube videos and Honda forums. I just did a lot of research. The hardest part was actually starting the project. I was so afraid to tackle it because I didn’t want to mess anything up. I eventually just went for it and it all paid off. I was able to install the parts I bought for the car and I was quite happy with it. A year or so later, my dad got into a car accident which totaled the car. Fortunately he was alright with no major injuries. The car however, was toast. I was out of luck again. Here’s what the old Honda looked like after the modifications:
After having to drive a Ford Econoline (grandfather’s spare vehicle) for a couple of months, I found a new car for myself on Craigslist. This car was my 19th birthday gift (which I paid for myself!). I found myself a 1993 Mazda Miata. Now, I could’ve gone for a much newer car and did financing, but I liked older Japanese vehicles too much. I liked having a used car because of the idea of having an ongoing project. I also liked the idea of having something beat up and reviving to be as nice as the new cars out today. I really like the simplicity of older vehicles as well. The lack of frills and features can actually be really nice. It makes it so that I’m not too dependent on the technology and I have to really rely on my own skills to be a good driver.
Anyways, this car is what I currently drive. I’ve had it for about 3 years now and I’ve done quite a lot to it. I already had a plan for it too since buying it. The support from the Miata community is really great and there are plenty of resources of information to look towards. This made me feel better about my purchase because I knew that I wouldn’t be left clueless. There were a lot of imperfections about the car. I already knew this coming in, but It gave me a lost of things to improve. I taught myself the basics of maintenance like motor oil, spark plug, and transmission oil changes. Since I had the available resources, I knew that I’d be able to take on a project and be ready just in case. I taught myself a lot just through trial and error. I would also take my time when doing a project. It was therapeutic for me. I enjoyed the long hours figuring out how to solve a problem if I got stuck. It made finishing it all the more worth it and it added on to my driving experience. I knew that since I would drive this car everyday, I wanted to enjoy it and have fun with it.
While I am very ambitious with my projects, I also know my limits. I make sure to do A LOT of research before tackling a big project. I make sure that I have the necessary tools so that I’m prepared and that I’d have enough information/resources to guide me through the process. After that, the hardest part again, is just starting the project. The list of parts and things I’ve done to the car are too much to list, but here are the most notable things I’ve done:
- Roll bar
- Coilovers
- Catback exhaust system
- Headers
- Wheels
I’m very proud of what I’ve done. Right now as of 2016, my car is starting to really show it’s age. I’m trying to keep up with the maintenance and going easy on the car because I want it to last. I know that there is still a good amount of life in it and there are still projects that I want to complete before I can say that I’m fully content. Here’s the most current photo of my Miata:
Not the prettiest, but she has never failed me.
Fashion
I am by no means saying that I’m a fashion icon. I wouldn’t really go out to saying that I’m “fashionable.” Really, I just pay attention to my clothing and try to wear clothes that look good. Simple as that. With this said, I found an interest towards fashion. In high school, I started to pay attention to what I wore. I didn’t have a job back then so I made due. A couple of years later, I started really paying attention especially since I had an income. I started going on fashion forums and gained inspiration from different outfits that people wore. From this, I started to gain my own style. I’m more into streetwear because it’s more affordable and more suited towards my age. Simple and plain, it just looks cool to me. Nevertheless, I find high fashion very intriguing. I would say my top favorite designers would be Rick Owens, Yohji Yamamoto and Raf Simons. Unfortunately, I’m not in the position (yet!) to spend $1000 on a pair of shoes. Like with my car hobby I make due with the resources I have available. I’ll find decent alternatives and pay attention to the quality so that it still looks good but doesn’t have the feel of a Wal-mart clearance rack. This is where the forums come in handy. There are plenty of threads dedicated to cheaper alternatives and this is what I gravitate towards. I just know that I’ll invest when I really want to. I’m not the kind to cheap out on particular things.
Again, I know my limits. I’m not a tall person. I’m a bit under average height sitting at 5’8″. Models are a minimum of 6′ and they have great bodies. When I go shopping, I’ll look for clothes that are flattering but not too flashy (or revealing). Sometimes I feel committed to wear something that I never usually wear. I also don’t go too tight because–let’s face it, no one wants to see that. Now, I’ll say that I’m working out and I’ll touch up on this later but I’m getting there! There’s a certain aesthetic that I want to achieve that will look fine with any outfit despite my height.
I like more of the minimalist style. I’ve been building my wardrobe with all of the basics. I’ll splurge time to time when buying something more interesting, but I’ve been focused on the fundamentals. Less is more in a wardrobe because I find that investing in higher quality items is better than having a plentitude of low quality items. There’s also a great versatility when investing in the basics because they can be used in most occasions no matter what the season is.
Fitness
Last year out of nowhere, I decided to pay attention to my health. My mentality was that I’m still young, and I want to enjoy my youth before I had to take on more responsibilities. I might as well take advantage of the energy I have and use it to gain as much knowledge as I can as well as invest in my body to look good. I knew I’d be investing in my future as well by gaining strength and resilience through working out. I just wanted to be comfortable in my own body and have fun. I was never satisfied with my body and I knew that I was the only thing stopping myself from achieving what I wanted. I also had the Internet at my disposal, so why not use it? I eventually decided to join a gym and start working out.
Back in high school, I took a weight training class and I used this knowledge to my advantage when coming back to the gym. I set up my own regimen and stuck to it. I eventually started seeing results. Little by little, the weight started to come off. I knew that diet was very important to successful weight loss. Because of this, I searched up healthier alternatives and meal plans in order to supplement my exercise regimen and remain as efficient as possible. With this, I gained the discipline I needed while staying realistic with the occasional treat.
I started to love fitness because of how I felt each day. I would feel clean and light after a workout and I would feel great the next day. I would look really forward to when I’d go to the gym. Even the feeling of soreness after an intense lift day was an indicator of good progress to me. I eventually installed a calorie counting app to track my food and record my workouts and this only helped me stay on top of what my intake would be and guided my food plans for the day. My goals shifted from heavy lifting to long distance running. I run a minimum of 3 miles every time I workout. I even ran my first 5k in March! I plan to cut my body fat first and then focus again on weight lifting. I can proudly say that when I started, I weight ~200lbs and now, I’m nearing ~170lbs. My goal is to reach 160 and lose more body fat in order for me to start bulking up on muscle again.
Computer hardware
I built my first computer about 4 years ago. It was definitely a nerve-wracking experience but I used forums and YouTube (surprise surprise) to teach myself how to do it. I wish I had my currents friends back then because they all built their own computers. I simply had to rely on my gut and loads of online information to guide me with this project. It turned out to be much easier than I thought. I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment from my first build because it even booted successfully the first time. I still use the same computer with just upgrades on the graphics card and it’s still running very well. Since then I’ve built 3 other computers. Each successful on it’s first boot up and another useful skill under my belt.
I’ve also worked on my laptop several times. I have a 2011 Macbook pro which has definitely seen better days. Many components broke due to my own neglect. I taught myself how to solder cables because my Wi-fi cables broke due to overheating. I had to replace the trackpad and battery as well. My most recent project was upgrading my RAM from 4gb to 16gb, and removing the disc drive to retrofit an SSD for performance. Like my car, taking the first step to actually going through with the repair is the hardest part but once that’s overcome, it’s easy to do. My laptop now is faster and runs better than when I bought it 5 years ago.
Education
I enjoy being around kids. I feel like it allows me to build a patience and understanding especially for young minds. In terms of my interest in education, it leans more towards the youth rather than teens. I feel like I have an easier time appealing to younger children. When I was in 6th grade, I was chosen to be the advisor for the one of the Kindergarten class. I was assigned to just spend some time hanging out with the kids and letting them know about the events happening in school. I really enjoyed it, and I felt like I gained experience interacting with a large group of rowdy children. I also recall giving violin lessons to my next door neighbor. This was more of a formal setting because I was being paid for it. It was my first time teaching too but it gave me the chance to figure out a curriculum and teach the instrument in the best way tailored for the student. I realized the unique level of learning and comprehension that someone else had and how much it differed from the way that I learned. This taught me to adjust and have patience so that they would be able to understand while enjoying the experience on the way.
In my church, I used to be the head of the Children’s Worship Service (also commonly known as “Sunday school”). I had to apply my learning and experience here because it was such a vital role. I also had to learn to really examine myself as a person and make sure that their perception of me was good. I knew this because children are very impressionable and I didn’t want to lead a bad example. This again, was another lesson of patience and discipline but all for the good because I wanted the children to grow up to be good, honest and successful.
If you’ve read this far, you made it! I really admire your patience and I appreciate your interest in me!
Bryce Villanueva 